Insurgents ask migrant labourers to leave Manipur

Imphal: Insurgents of seven major outfits on Thursday asked the outsiders particularly migrant labourers to leave Manipur as their presence overwhelmed the identities, customs and cultures of minority communities who have been living here peacefully for some thousand of years.

People in the state should stop letting houses, shops and lands to outsiders and hiring of their services for different works including masonry and construction of houses, business activities and others should be stopped by December 31, said a statement of the co-ordination committee (CORCOM).

The statement did not, however, set any dateline for the leaving of outsiders from Manipur.

The statement said outsiders who came to Manipur in connection with academic activities, art and culture, sports, religious and other business activities would be exempted from the purview of the stand of the insurgents if the stay of the former was short in the state.

The CORCOM statement also warned relevant government authorities against issuing `no objection certificate,` `birth certificate,` `voter identity card`, documents related to insurance policies etc to outsiders adding that vehicle drivers and transporters who bring outsiders to Manipur after taking some money should stop doing so immediately.

The continuous influx of outsiders has posed a serious threat to the very existence of the indigenous people, the statement said adding that indigenous people in the region was being swamped by outsiders.